Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Bottle up summer and put a cork in it

Overridingly, it's season and weather appropriate (said begrudgingly from a potentially rainy NYC). Yes, right now it's spring and yes, this outfit is defiantly summer. But this is Miami - there's no difference. Lesson #001: Dress for location, dress for weather. As she does. Palm trees and sunlight provide the setting, her outfit provides the story.

White dress, white shades, all white everything~...

(Aside: Monochromatic looks are not for amateurs. As Jay-z attests, all black everything is the safest bet, but it's rare that such outfits aren't (a) boring, (b) trying too hard to make a statement, or (c) some combination of the two.)

Of course, this outfit really isn't all white everything. We have the black carryall which provides a great backdrop for the rest to shine. (Ladies, your bag IS part of your outfit, please keep that in mind.) We have the cork soles on her shoes which of course contribute to the whole summer-on-the-beach feel.

But here's the fulcrum on which this outfit teeters from vanilla to va-thrilla (sorry, that was terrible): Those shoes with that tattoo! S-S-S-S-SUPER COMBO!

Now, I'm a little ambivalent about tattoos. Without delving too deep into the subject, tattoos - particularly prominent tattoos that, say, spread from your shoulder down to your forearm - are such a permanent accessory (in a manner of speaking). It's like trying to dress yourself while having to carry the same exact bag every day. You have to constantly either cover it or work with it.

Well, in this case she doesn't work with it. She works it. The way the outfit highlights her tattoo is a total success. And of course the key is her shoes. They play off the ink while not chewing up the scenery. If this were the Oscars those pumps would be a lock for Best Supporting Factor. I'm not sure what those shoes are (closest I could find: Stuart Weitzmann Corkswoon) but I like to imagine that they were pure white when she bought them and ended up like this after she went to town on them with a set of Magic Markers. It's the romantic in me.